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I love my book club. Although I'm a new member, having joined just six months ago, I feel very connected to all the other women, many of who have been meeting monthly for over 10 years.

Our tradition is to prepare and serve a meal that is related in some way to the selected book. We've enjoyed meals inspired by cuisines of France ("The Book of Salt" by Monique Truong), Afghanistan ("The Kite Runner" by Khaled Hosseini), the Mormon Church ("Under the Banner of Heaven" by Jon Krakauer) and most recently Israel and the Middle East ("Martyr's Crossing" by Amy Wilentz).

The Wilentz novel is an interesting and sometimes suspenseful story of the current conflict between the Israelis and the Palestinians and its victims.

My friend Julie prepared a delicious meal that incorporated both Israeli and Palestinian dishes — including Roasted Tomato and Eggplant Soup, Chicken with Oranges and Ginger and, for dessert, Butter Cookies and cold watermelon.




Roasted Tomato and Eggplant Soup | Serves 8

4 large tomatoes, cut in halves
2 large eggplants, sliced, salted and rinsed
4 large cloves of garlic, peeled
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tsp. chopped thyme
4 cups chicken stock
1/2 cup chopped toasted walnuts
4 Tbs. chopped parsley

Toss the tomatoes, eggplant and garlic with the olive oil. Roast the vegetables in a pre-heated 425 degrees oven for 30 minutes, or until the eggplant is very tender.

Remove the skin from the eggplant, and place the vegetables and the pan juices in a soup pot. Add the chicken stock and chopped thyme. Bring to a boil, then reduce the soup to a simmer. Cook uncovered for about 30 minutes. Puree the soup until smooth. Simmer until the soup is thickened. Serve warm, garnished with the chopped walnuts and parsley.




Chicken with Oranges and Ginger | Serves 8

4 Tbs. flour
3/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
3/4 tsp. paprika
1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
1/2 tsp. ground allspice
1/2 tsp. ground cloves
2 tsp. fine sea salt
4 Tbs. vegetable oil
3 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, sliced in half horizontally
1/2 cup white wine
1/4 cup honey
2 Tbs. grated ginger
1 cup chicken stock
3/4 cup orange juice
zest from 1 orange

Mix together the flour, cinnamon, paprika, pepper, allspice, cloves and salt. Dredge each chicken fillet in the flour mixture, knocking off the excess.

Heat the oil in a large skillet. Brown the chicken pieces on each side, no more than 1 minute per side. Remove the chicken to a platter. Add the wine, honey, ginger, chicken stock and orange juice to the pan. Bring to a boil, stirring to loosen up the bits from the bottom of the pan. Simmer the sauce until thickened, about 15 minutes.

Just before serving, reheat the sauce. Return the chicken to the pan, coating well with the sauce. Serve the chicken on a bed of rice, garnishing with the orange zest.




Butter Cookies | Makes about 48 cookies

8 oz. unsalted margarine (or butter)
1 cup baker's sugar
1 tsp. orange flower water
2 1/2 cups flour
48 pistachio or almond halves (optional)
3/4 cup powdered sugar

Beat the margarine, sugar and orange flower water until very light and fluffy. Mix in the flour until blended. Gather the dough and roll into one inch balls. Place the cookies on a parchment or silicone-lined baking pan, leaving 1/2 inch space between them. Flatten each cookie slightly and press in a nut (optional).

Bake the cookies in a pre-heated 325-degree oven for 12-15 minutes. Do not allow the cookies to brown. Cool the cookies on the pan. Once cool, sprinkle with powdered sugar. Store in an air-tight container.

Serve with cool watermelon on the side.




Rebecca Ets-Hokin is a Bay Area cooking teacher and food professional. Her columns alternate with those of Louise Fiszer. Questions and recipe ideas can be sent to j. or to .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)">.(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).